A portrait and biographical record of Boone, Clinton and Hendricks Counties, Ind. : containing biographical sketches of many prominent and representative citizens, together with biographies and portraits of all of the presidents of the United States, and biographies of the governors of Indiana, Part 24

Author:
Publication date: 1895
Publisher: Chicago, Ill. : A.W. Bowen & Co.
Number of Pages: 1080

USA > Indiana > Boone County > A portrait and biographical record of Boone, Clinton and Hendricks Counties, Ind. : containing biographical sketches of many prominent and representative citizens, together with biographies and portraits of all of the presidents of the United States, and biographies of the governors of Indiana > Part 24
USA > Indiana > Clinton County > A portrait and biographical record of Boone, Clinton and Hendricks Counties, Ind. : containing biographical sketches of many prominent and representative citizens, together with biographies and portraits of all of the presidents of the United States, and biographies of the governors of Indiana > Part 24
USA > Indiana > Hendricks County > A portrait and biographical record of Boone, Clinton and Hendricks Counties, Ind. : containing biographical sketches of many prominent and representative citizens, together with biographies and portraits of all of the presidents of the United States, and biographies of the governors of Indiana > Part 24

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HOMAS J. COOK, a leading farmer and stock dealer of Harrison town- ship, Boone county, Ind., was born in Kentucky, May 11, 1843, and is of German descent, his great-grandfather having come from the country indicated and having settled in Virginia in an early period of the history of that state. George Cook, grand- father of Thomas J., was born in Virginia; when quite young settled in Boyle county, Ky., and there married Jemima Wilhite, the father of whom was born in 1777, and the mother April 25, 1779. George Cook was a pillar of the Baptist church, of which his wife was also a devout member, and in that faith both died -he, January 31, 1865, and she November 13, 1863-the parents of the following-named children: Meliva, Julia, Sallie, Betsey, Nancy, Strother, Allen, Jefferson and Joseph. Jeffer- son Cook, son of George and father of Thomas

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J., was born in Boyle county, Ky., August 1, . 1812, and grew to manhood on his father's farm. January 8, 1834, he married Malinda Myres, who bore children in the following order: David, William, George, Maria, Thomas J., Mary and Malinda.

Thomas J. Cook, until seventeen years of age, lived with his uncles, Strother and Allen, on the farm in Kentucky, and then came to Johnson county, Ind., and here enlisted in the Union [army, August 8, 1862. He was first sent to Bowling Green, Ky., where he was placed on guard duty, and was there when Buell and Bragg made their noted race for Louisville; while at Bowling Green, 500 men, Mr. Cook included, were detailed under Gen. Harrison to capture a number of the enemy at a point twenty-five miles away, and succeeded, by a surprise movement, in taking the most of them, together with a number of guns; Mr. Cook was next sent to Gallatin, Tenn., and then to Pilot Knob for winter quarters; when spring opened they were sent to Nashville, where they fell in with Gen. Sherman and with his army marched south. Gen. Jo. Hooker was placed in command of the corps to which Mr. Cook was attached; the first engagement was at Resaca, where they were called into line late in the evening, and where, after some desperate fighting, they were badly cut up by the enemy; they then fell back of a hill and lay on their arms all night, and next morning, being relieved, were ordered to fall back a mile. The commanders were now Hooker, commander-in-chief; Ward, division com- mander, and Ben. Harrison, brigadier. Here Gen. Harrison addressed the men to the effect that there were strong breastworks and heavy guns in front; follow the guides; and, dis- mounting, Harrison joined the men, dashed from the cover of the hill, and, getting in view of the enemy, the men all yelled, made a charge and had almost reached the works,

when the line broke, fell back in disorder, and lost over 300 men from Mr. Cook's regiment. Harrison again addressed the men, and told them they could take the works and must do so, or he would not stay with them. The next charge was a success, Mr. Cook's brigade capturing eight big guns and a few men; but in this battle Mr. Cook's company lost thirty-five men --- or more than it lost dur- ing the remainder of the war. The next day they buried their dead and cared for the wounded, and for the next four or five months were in daily pursuit of the rebel, Johnston, al- most every hour being under a heavy can- nonade or a galling fire of musketry --- at Hickory Ridge skirmish and Peach Tree Creek cannonade, and elsewhere. At Peach Tree Creek, Harrison was commander of the divis- ion. He crossed the creek, with his skirmish line out a half mile ahead, stacked arms, rest- ed a few minutes, and commenced to make a fire for coffee, but in five minutes his shirmish line was driven back. The order was im- mediately given to fall in, and all obeyed and were ordered forward; Harrison's aim was to come to close quarters, but the rebels com- menced firing and the Union men were quick to respond, and in the charge upon the breast- works Mr. Cook's company lost but two men. In the campaign to Atlanta, the Federals were under fire for two months, nearing the city day by day, and finally driving out the Con- federates. The division was also at the Chattahoochee river, where for a time it was held in reserve, and then a division made, Mr. Cook's regiment marching direct to Savannah, Ga., which city it reached December 25, 1864. The Federals lived off the country through which they passed, the Kentucky and Tennes- see troops doing most of the devastation. After leaving Savannah, the Federals skirmish- ed northward through Georgia and North Carolina until Goldsboro and Raleigh were

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reached and Johnston finally captured. After- ward came the march through Richmond to Washington, Ben. Harrison being with the boys all the time.

The marriage of Mr. Cook took place August 23, 1866, to Miss Fanny Potinger, who was born in Montgomery county, Ind., Septem- ber 16, 1848, a daughter of Harvey and Sidney (Hand) Potinger, of Johnson county. Mr. Cook settled in Boone county in October, 1866, on a farm of ninety-four acres in the wilder- ness, but this he has transformed into a beau- tiful and fertile farm of 200 acres, and it is still his place of residence. It is improved with every modern convenience, including a niodel dwelling and tasty farm buildings. He is one of the most progressive and scientific farmers in Boone county. Mrs. Cook's grand- father, Robert Potinger, was of German descent but was early a settler of Ohio, where he mar- ried and was a useful and highly respected citizen, owning a large and highly improved farm. He was a patriot in the war of 1812, and he and wife died devout members of the Christian church. Mr. Cook is a republican, is a member of the Rich Mountain post, G. A. R., of Lebanon; his wife is a member of the Christian church, which they both liberally aid with their means, and not only aid this, but all other truly charitable causes. Three chil- dren have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Cook, viz: Ora, Gertrude and Natalie G.

OSES COPELAND .- In England, the proprietor who owns the soil considers himself an aristocrat, and the people universally respect his assumptions; he is allowed certain hereditary privileges, and among the least of his titles is that of "Squire." The American farmer is nature's aristocrat; not that he has inherited privileges, but because he and his ancestors

cleared up the virgin American forests and possess them by inalienable rights, and as honest tillers of the soil. Such a man is Moses Copeland, who is one of the prominent farmers of Center township, Boone county, Ind., and the father of a respected family. Samuel Copeland, the grandfather of our subject, was one of the original pioneers of Kentucky con- temporaneous with Daniel Boone, when the state was overrun with Indians. He reared a large family of children, as follows: William, Thomas, James, John, Milton, Sallie, Wesley, Rachael and Polly. Mr. Copeland was a slave owner, and, for his day, a wealthy man. He moved to Indiana in 1811-12, and settled in Shelby township, Jefferson county, near Ca- naan. The county was an entire wilderness, and he entered a large tract of land. from which he gave his children 1,200 acres, the six sons receiving 160 acres each, and the three daughters eighty acres each, reserving 160 acres as a home for himself in his old age. He brought four young slaves from Kentucky and set them free when they were twenty-one years old. He was a typical pioneer. much respected by all who knew him, and lived to be between seventy and eighty years of age. In political opinions he was a republican, and in religious convictions he was a Methodist. His son Thomas was the father of our subject, born in Kentucky on his father's farm in 1795, and was twenty-two years of age when he came to Indiana, after his father had been settled in this state for some years. He was a blacksmith by trade, and had worked at the mouth of the Elkhorn river in Kentucky. He married in Jefferson county, Ind .. Sallie, daughter of Moses and Elizabeth Hopper. He worked at his trade in Jefferson county for fifteen years, when his health failed him and he lingered eleven years with the consumption and died on his farm in Jefferson county, at the age of fifty-two years. He and his wife were

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members of the "Indian Kentucky" Baptist church of Jefferson county, Ind., on a creek bearing that name, and he was deacon many years. In political opinions he was an old- line whig. To Mr. and Mrs. Copeland were born four children: John, Moses, Smallwood and Eliza. Mr. Copeland was a very hard- working, industrious man, possessing sterling traits of character, one of which was truth, and his word was as good as his bond.

Moses Copeland, son of above and subject of this sketch, was born January 10, 1822, on his father's farm in Jefferson county, Ind. He received the common education of the old pioneer log school-house and taught school two terms. He became a farmer and married at the age of twenty-one years, April 25, 1843, Mary E., daughter of Jacob and Martha (Singer) Kiser, of Ripley county, Ind. Mr. Kiser was from Kentucky and of German de- scent, Frederick Kiser, the grandfather of Mrs Copeland, having come from Germany and settled in Kentucky. Jacob Kiser reared seven children : William, Frederick, Henry C., Elizabeth A., John W., and Mary E. He moved to Indiana and entered land, but owing to the bad roads, settled within thirteen miles of the Ohio river, in Ripley county, Ind., in 1823, where he died on his farm, at sixty years of age. He was also a blacksmith, and a captain in the old state militia. He voted the old line whig ticket, and was a member of the Baptist church, to which faith his wife and nearly all his children adhered.

After marriage. Mr. Copeland settled in Ripley county, Ind., in 1843, residing eighteen years, and in 1861, moved, with his family, to Boone county, Ind., and settled on his pres- ent farm, then consisting of eighty acres of land. By thrift and industry he has added to this farm until he now owns 280 acres of fine land. He has given his sons eighty acres each, his daughters one thousand dollars each,

- and retains a good home of eighty acres, upon which he has made good improvements. When Mr. Copeland came to this farm is was covered with heavy timber, and it was by hard and continuous labor that he cleared it, im- proved it with ditches and made it the fine and fertile farm it became. To Mr. and Mrs. Copeland were born the following children : Sarah M., who died a married woman; Eliza I., who died an infant; Taylor S .; Mary J. and Louis W. Mr. Copeland has been a dea- con in the Baptist church for more than thirty years and his wife is a member of the same church. In political opinions he is a republi- can. He has given all his children good edu- cations, two of whom are school-teachers. Fraternally Mr. Copeland is a member of Boone lodge, No. 9, F. & A. M., Lebanon, and has held the office of deacon. Mr. Cope- land is one of the self-made men of Boone county, having accumulated his property by his own industry and without assistance. He has always stood high for his integrity of character. Mr. and Mrs. Copeland have brought up Maud P., the daughter of their youngest son, and are giving her a good edu- cation. Mr. Copeland and wife have been married fifty-one years.

SA COX, who was born in Jefferson county. Ind., January 12, 1824, is a son of Er. and Elizabeth (Lame) Cox, natives of New Jersey and of German descent. The family came to Boone county, Ind., in 1829, about thirteen years after the state was admitted to the Union, and when the county was a wilderness. Here Mr. Cox hewed out a farm and successfully followed his vocation until his death in 1855, his wife hav- ing preceded him to an early grave some years. They were the parents of eleven children, and of these Asa was brought up to the useful call-

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ing which had been followed by his father, and was reared under his careful training. Asa has never married. His farm is productive, and Mr. Cox is a model citizen as well as a model farmer, his work in the latter capacity being unexcelled by any other farmer in the town- ship. In politics Mr. Cox is a democrat.

ILLIAM G. CORY, an intelligent and highly respected farmer of . Jefferson township, Boone county, Ind., was born in Clarke county, Ohio, May 20, 1832, and is a son of Nathan and Mary (Smith) Cory, natives of Ohio and New Jersey respectively, and of English descent. The pedigree extends so far back in Albion's isle that, in order to give the reader an idea of its antiquity, the writer must resort to the simple but strong, terse, language of the Scriptures: William Cory was born in England about the year 1400; William begat Thomas; Thomas begat Robert; Robert begat John; John begat Thomas, who was born July 3, 1510; Thomas begat John, who came from England to Amer- ica in 1600; John begat Elnathan; Elnathan begat Jeremiah, who was born in New Jersey; Jeremiah begat Noah; Noah begat Nathan; Nathan begat William G., the gentleman whose name opens this sketch. Mr. and Mrs. Nathan Cory came to Boone county, Ind., in 1851, and here Mrs. Cory died in March, 1879; Mr. Cory still survives and has his residence at the home of William G. Of the four children born to Nathan and wife two only are living- Noah and William G.

William G. Cory received an excellent training as a farmer and materially assisted on the home farm until his marriage, January 9, 1855, to Miss Margaret E. Stephenson, to which happy union have been born four chil- dren, viz: James S., Mary L., wife of William A. Peterson; Iva R., wife of Benjamin F.

Moore, and Walter M. Some ten years after his marriage Mr. Cory responded to his country's call and enlisted, in March, 1865, in company B, Capt. Hebb, One Hundred and Fifty-fourth regiment, Indiana volunteer in- fantry. He served faithfully and valiantly in all the marches, skirmishes and engagements in which his company participated, until his honorable discharge, August 8, 1865. In pol- itics he is a republican, and has served his fellow-citizens as assessor of his township for a year, deeming it to be a part of his duty as a citizen so serve in public office when called upon to do so, and not for the sake of the meager compensation the office affords. He is a member of the G. A. R., his post number being 184. With his wife he is a member of the Presbyterian church, and as a church member, a citizen and kindly neighbor, has won the respect of all who knew him.

EBULON COX .- Among the exten- sive farmers and stock raisers of Boone county who do honor to the noble calling of agriculture is the gentleman whose name appears at the head of this notice. Zebulon Cox is a native Indianian, born in the county of Bartholomew on the eleventh day of July, 1825, the son of William and Elizabeth (Erganbright) Cox, natives respectively of Kentucky and Virginia. William Cox was left an orphan at the early age of seven years, and until his eighteenth year made his home with an uncle, Martin McCray, in Ohio, growing to manhood on a farm in that state. His mar- riage with Eizabeth Erganbright was solemn- ized in the year 1812, and shortly thereafter he came to Indiana, locating in the county of Bar- tholemew, where he purchased a tract of gov- ernment land, from which he developed a home; his death subsequently occurred in John- son county, Ind. By his first wife, who died

Respectfully, S. N. Craques.

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in 1832, he had ten children, three now living, and by a second marriage he also had the same number of children, his family having been the largest in the community where he resided. Zebulon Cox remained with his parents until attaining his majority, received a limited edu- cation in the country schools, and began life for himself as a farmer, purchasing his first real estate, consisting of eighty acres, in his native county, to which forty acres were sub- sequently added. He continued on this farm until 1855, when he disposed of the same and became a resident of Boone county, purchasing a tract of 166 acres of unimproved land, to which he made additions at intervals, until he eventually became one of the largest owners of real estate in the county, his possessions at one time aggregating 989 acres. With the ex- ception of 160 acres, reserved for a home in his declining years, Mr. Cox has generously divided his large estate among his children, and he is consoled by the reflection that his success is due to his own efforts, and that his life has been void of offense to his fellow-men. In September, 1873, Mr .. Cox went to Missouri, where he followed farming and stock raising until 1877, owning in that state a valuable farm of 320 acres, which he disposed of on his return to Boone county, in January of the latter year. Mr. Cox was married October 7, 1851, to Nancy Lang, daughter of William and Polly (Bass) Lang, natives of Kentucky and North Carolina respectively, and early pioneers of Morgan county, Ind. The results of this union are the following children: Mary E., Richard M., William W., Margaret E, wife of Mell A. Thompson; Otis B., Clement L., de- ceased; and Albert L. Mr. Cox is an intelli- gent farmer, gives wide attention to the proper rotation of crops, and belongs to that well- informed class who have succeeded in elevat- ing agriculture to its true dignity as a science. He is a man of influence in the community, is

highly esteemed in his own and neighboring townships, and occupies a conspicuous place among the successful self-made men of the county of Boone. Politically he affiliates with the populist party, the principles of which, when practically applied, he believes to be for the best interest of the country.

S TRANGE N. CRAGUN, the well known and efficient editor of the Leb- anon (Ind.) Patriot, springs from sturdy Scotch-Irish ancestry, his great- grandfather having come from the north of Ireland in an early day and having settled in Virginia. His son, Elisha Cragun, grandfather of Strange N., was born in that state, but was among the pioneers of the southeast part of Rush county, Ind., whence, in 1835, he came to Boone county and located in Eagle town- ship, but afterward went west with his family and died at Council Bluffs, Iowa. The fam- ily, however, continued their journey westward and settled in Utah, where members of them still live. Hiram Cragun, son of Elisha and fatherof Strange N., was born in Rush county, Ind., near the Franklin county line, December S. 1816, was reared a farmer, and was nine- teen years of age when he accompanied his father to Boone county. The farm on which they here settled was very heavily timbered, and Hiram, who was a very industrious and hard-working man, did a vast amount of work in assisting his father in clearing away the fine black walnut trees and in burning them in piles to get rid of them. Hiram was married in Boone county to Reiter, daughter of Robert Dooley, and to this union were born nine chil- dren, of whom seven grew to maturity, viz .: Josephine, Neb, Melvina, George C., Hiram, Strange N., and Lorenzo D. The farm owned by Hiram Cragun comprised 245 acres, and on this he lived until 1884, when he died at the

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age of sixty-eight years, universally respected. He was a democrat in politics until the firing on Fort Sumter, when he became a strong re- publican and an ardent Union man; he was also a great admirer of Abraham Lincoln. With his wife he was a member of the Metho- dist Episcopal church, and for many years was a class leader of the Pleasant View society, which he assisted in founding, and which first met in the "little brick" school-house; he was a man of high character, very exact, and held hypocrisy in utter abhorrence.

Strange N. Cragun was born July 24, 1857, on his father's farm in Eagle township, Boone county, Ind. He received his prepara- tory education in the common schools, and this was supplemented by a course of three years at the Zionsville academy and one term at Purdue university. He became a teacher in Boone county at the age of seventeen, in 1874, and taught in the district schools of Worth township, and in the graded school at Zionsville-four years in all-and then had charge of the graded school of Reelsville, Put- nam county, Ind., for one year. In the spring of 1879, while on a visit to Purdue university, Mr. Cragun went before the board of ex- aminers of candidates for admission to West Point Military academy, and from the thirty- one applicants from the ninth congressional district he was selected for the important and distinguished appointment. At West Point he was obliged to undergo another examination, and of the 160 applicants he was one of the 120 to pass the severe ordeal. On the twentieth of June following (1879), he reported at West Point and was admitted to the class of · 1883, but two years later, on account of im- paired eyesight, he was obliged to tender his resignation. In the spring of 1881 he return- ed to Boone county and accepted the principal- ship of the Whitestown graded schools for one year, when he was called to Zionsville, to

form a joint principalship with W. B. Alford, which lasted one year. He then came to Lebanon, and for four years was principal of the high school. In 1887 Mr. Cragun was elected county superintendent of schools, a position he filled four years and three months, serving ont the unexpired term of Harvey M. LaFollette. During his administration, he brought the schools up to a high standard and introduced new courses of study, securing uni- formity in the grading of the schools, making the township institute much more effective, and achieving the reputation of being an ex- cellent disciplinarian both as a teacher and a superintendent. He was strict, but impartial, in his examination of teachers, and reduced the number of licenses nearly one-half, ex- tending the policy of his predecessor, Mr. La Follette.

May 2, 1891, Mr. Cragun bought the Patriot, the oldest newspaper in Boone conn- ty, that has been published continuously, dating its birth from 1857. It is republican in its politics and is independent and out- spoken in the advocacy of the principles of that party, and in its discussion of local and county questions and measures. Mr. Cragun has greatly increased its subscription list since he assumed the editorial chair, this increase arising from the improvement he has made in its leading articles and the higher plane on which he has placed the literary selections, as well as the completeness to which he has brought his news columns. As its name indicates, the journal is indeed patriotic in all things. On June 17, 1883, Mr. Cragun was united in matrimony with Miss Addie M., daughter of Benjamin and Margaret (Beeler) Booher, at Whitestown, Ind., and to this felicitous union have been born three children-Ethel and Opal, twins, and Dwight, the last named born October 5, 1891. This happy little family, however, was rudely broken into by the taking

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away of Opal at the age of six and a half years. Mr. Booher, the father of Mrs. Cra- gun, a prominent and wealthy citizen, is now living in retirement in Lebanon, and further information concerning him and his family will be found on another page. Mr. Cragun is a member of Boone lodge, No. 9, F. & A. M .; Lebanon chapter, No. 39, R. A. M .; also Lebanon lodge, No. 45, K. of P .; also with his wife, of Lebanon chapter, No. 23, O. E. S., while Mrs. Cragun is a member of the Luther- an church at Whitestown. Mr. Cragun has recently erected a very fine and substantial residence, which is much admired for its taste- fulness and beauty of architecture. The family is highly respected and moves in the best social circles of the county.

EANDER MEAD CRIST, an emi- nent educator and temperance reform- er of Boone county," Ind., was born at Liberty, Union county, Ind., Octo- ber 23, 1837, and is a son of James Weller and Mary (LaFuze) Crist, of whom the former was born in Hamilton county, Ohio, July 4, 1803, and died at Liberty, Ind., September 14, 1859. The latter, a daughter of Samuel and Eleanor (Harper) LaFuze, was born near Brownsville, Pa., March 21, 1805, and died at Thorntown, Ind., November 6, 1890. The grandfathers of Mrs. Mary (LaFuze) Crist, Harper and LaFuze, both lost their lives in the Revolutionary war while endeavoring to secure the independence of the American nation. George Weller Crist, paternal grandfather of Leander Mead Crist, was a native of New York, of German descent; born September 20, 1770, and in 1795 removed to Ohio, whence, in 1812, he came to Indiana, entered land and settled where Liberty now stands, and there died March 16, 1844. His wife, who bore the maiden name of Sarah Bell, was born in Ire-

land in 1772, and in her eighth year came with her parents to America, dying at Laurel, Ind., in 1864. The ancestors of Mr. Crist were Protestants on both sides, and farmers by voca- tion, and were noted for their industry, energy and sobriety. The parents of Mr. Crist were married March 2, 1823, immediately settled in the forest and were blessed with eleven children, Leander being the eighth and ten living to reach their majority. The parents early con- nected themselves with the M. E. church and their home was a favorite stopping place of the pioneer preachers of that faith; they were also charter members of the first temperance society in Union county. and banished cards, tobacco and intoxicants as early as 1833, and gave to their children the best educational advantages the country afforded. Leander M. Crist assisted his father on the home farm and in the mill until he was twenty-five years of age, and in the fall of 1863 entered DePauw (formerly Asbury) university. where he remained four years, graduating with a class of twenty- four in 1667. He then went to Kentucky and taught a boy's academy at Lancaster for three years, at the same time studying law. In 1870 he returned to Liberty. Ind., and began practice. His marriage took place at Liberty, October 23, 1871, to Miss Eunice M. Brown, a graduate of Oxford college, with the class of 1867, and a daughter of Walter and Keziah (La Boyteau) Brown. December 2, 1872, a son was born to their union, but the joy and high hopes that came by this new tie of love were soon shrouded in deepest gloom by the death of the young mother February 25, 1873, in her twenty-third year. In 1875, Mr Crist was elected county superintendent of schools of Union county, which position he filled in a most satisfactory manner for six years. June 12, 1880, Mr. Crist selected for a second life companion another graduate of Oxford college, a Miss Orpha A. Gath, who graduated with the

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Author: Publication date: 1895 Publisher: Chicago, Ill. : A.W. Bowen & Co. Number of Pages: 1080

Author:
Publication date: 1895
Publisher: Chicago, Ill. : A.W. Bowen & Co.
Number of Pages: 1080